Safety-signal.



0.1 81 A. 0. EVANS.

.SAFETY SIGNAL- APPLICATION FlLED JAN-9.1917.

Patnted Jan. 1, 1918.

LQEEAQQQ Inventors Witnesses :IZW

Attorn eys UNITED STATES PATENT clarion.

OWENJAMES EVANS AND ATLEE oWEN'Ev Ns'oFo'ANToiI, OHIO.

SAFETY-SIGNAL.

Specification of Lttersfatent.

--Patented Jan.- 1, 1918.

Application filed January 9, 1917. Seria11Io. 141,425,

To all whom it may concern:

Be'it known that we, OWEN J. EVANS and ATLEE O. EVANS, citizens of the United States, residing at Canton, in the'county of Stark, State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Safety-Signal, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention appertains to signals and semaphores, and aims to provide a novel and improved safety signal adapted especially for use upon automobiles for Sig:

naling the intentions'of'the operator to steer to the right or left or to stop, whereby to facilitate trafic and avoid confusion and collision.

It isthe object of the invention to provide a safety signal of the nature indicated which is of novel and improved construction, which can be applied readily to various automobiles, and which will serve its office 'in a practical and efficient manner.

With the foregoing and other 'objectsin view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and'in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed can be made within the scope of what isclaimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

The invention is illustrated in the ac companying drawing, wherein Figure 1 is a median section of the signal, portionsbeing broken away and portions being shown in elevation.

Figs. 2 and 3 are sections taken on the respective section lines 22 and 33 of Fig. 1.

Fig. at is a plan view of the operating lever. v

The device embodies a cylindrical casing 1 comprising the body 2 and inner and outer ends 3 and 4 attachedin any suitable manner to the ends of the body, the ends 3 and a being preferably bulged outwardly or convexed. The casing 1 is preferably disposed at one side of the automobile in an outstanding horizontal position, suitable means being employed for supporting the casing. As illustrated, the inner end 3 of the casing has an outstanding bifurcated member 5 pivoted by a bolt 6 or otherwise to a horizontal arm 7 carriedby a clamp'S which canbe applied to the wind shield or other"suitable support of the automobile. The casing 1 is provided in its periphery or body 2 with opposite openings or windows 9 arrangedat the front andrear, and said openings are preferably covered by panels 10 of glass or other transparent material.

Mounted for rotary movement Within the casing 2 concentrically therein is a drum or signal member 11 composed ofthe disk 12 form'ing'the inner end thereof, the ring or annul'u's'13lformin'g' the'ou'ter end thereof, and panels 14, 15,16 and 17 forming the octagonal periphery of the drum. The disk 12 and ring 13 are provided with marginal rabbets 18 of octangular form in which the panels are seated, the ends of the panels abutting said disk and "ring. Thereare two sets of panels, the corresponding panels of the two sets being diametrically opposite to one another. Eachsetincludesa panel 14 bearing the legend Right, thejpanel 15 colored green, a panel 16 hearing the legend Left, and'apanel 17 hearing the legend Stop, the panels 141, 16 and 17 being suitably colored and either'theletters or back ground there of being transparent, the-panel 15 also being transparent for the 'passageof light therethrough. The disk or plate 12 has a central boss 19 projecting toward the outer end of the casing, and oblique bolts 20 are inserted through suitable apertures in the ring 13 and their inner ends threadedly engage the boss 19, whereby when the bolts-are tightened, the ring 13 will be drawn inwardly toward the'disk 12, thus clamping the panels between the disk andfrin g, and rendering the signal drum rigid. The bolts 20 are in an oblique position and converge inwardly to the boss 19, so that said bolts will act as stays and braces.

In order to mount the signal drum for oscillatory movement within the casing, a supporting disk or plate 21 is fitted Within the casing adjacent to the innerend thereof, and is provided with a central outwardly projecting bearing orpintle 22. The boss 19 of the drum has'an outwardly projectinghub '23 mounted for rotation upon the bearing 22, and the outer endofthe hub has a ,recntrant tubular portion 2%l.,-journaledthrough the bearing 22-and..protruding inwardly past the plate 21. A pinion 25 is secured upon the protruding inner end of the portion 24 and bears against the plate 21 to hold the drum upon the hearing.

A lamp socket 26 is attached to the end of the hub 23, and an electric lamp 27 is carried by said lamp socket, it being noted that when the outer end 4 of the casing is removed, ready access is had to the lamp socket through the ring 13. The conductors 28 of the lamp socket can extend through the tubular portion 24: of the inner end of the casing from which they can extend to the exterior. The lamp 2? is lighted during the night time, to illuminate the interior of the drum and its panels.

As a means for oscillating the signal drum, a gear segment 29 is pivoted, as at 30, to the plate or partition 21 at the inner side thereof, and its teeth mesh with the pinion 25. An arm 31 attached to the segment 29 has a flexible wire 32 attached thereto. This wire 32 is slidable through a flexible tubular casing 33 having one end attached to the inner end 3 of the casing l and having its other end attached to a segment 34 forming part of the controller. The segment St has a suitable clamp 35 applicable to the steering column or other suitable support of the automobile within ready reach of the operator, and an operating lever 36 is pivoted to the segment 3t and the other end of the wire 32 is attached thereto. The segment 3e has suitable designations to assist in the proper movement of the lever 36, and the segment can be notched to hold the lever 36 in its various positions. The segment 3% can also carry a switch 37 to control the circuit of the lamp 27, the lamp being extinguished during the day time, and being lighted at night.

In operation, when the automobile is moving straight ahead, the lever 36 is moved to a position whereby to turn the drum 11 to normal position with the green panels 15 adjacent to the openings or windows 9, thus indicating to the traiiic in front and rear that the automobile is moving, and giving a caution signal. It is evident that when the lever 36 is moved, the wire 32 is reciprocated, whereby to oscillate the segment 29 which imparts movement to the pinion 25 and drum 11. \Vhen the operator intends to turn to the right, the lever 36 is moved correspondingly, to bring the panels 14 adjacent to the windows or openings 9, and when the operator intends to steer toward the left, the drum 11 is turned to bring the panels 16 adjacent to the openings 9. Before the automobile is stopped, the handle or lever 36 is moved to bring the stop panels 17 adjacent to the openings 9. The drum 11 having two sets of panels, will cause similar panels to register with the openings or windows 9 simultaneously, to provide signals composed of an end plate, an. end ring and i panels between said plate and ring, and members engaged through said ring and converging toward one another and engaging said plate to draw the ring toward the plate.

3. A signal device embodying a supporting member having a bearing, a signal drum composed of a plate at one end, a ring at the other end and signal panels between said plate and ring, said plate having a hub projecting toward said ring and journaled upon said bearing, a lamp carried by said hub within the drum, and members engaged through said ring and converging toward one another and engaged with said plate to draw the ring toward the plate for clamping the panels therebetween.

4. A signal device embodying a supporting member having a bearing, a signal drum, one end of which is provided with a hub projecting toward the other end, said hub being journaled upon said bearing and having a reentrant tubular portion extending through the bearing, and means connected to said portion for holding the hub upon the bearing and for oscillating the drum.

5. A signal device embodying a supporting member having a bearing, a signal drum, one end of which is provided with a hub projecting toward the other end and mounted for rotation upon said bearing, said hub having a reentrant tubular portion extending through said bearing, a lamp carried by said hub within the drum, conductors for the lamp extending through said tubular portion, and means attached to said tubular portion for holding the hub upon the bearing and for oscillating the drum.

6. A signal device embodying a casing having a window, a supporting plate within 7 tubular portion ehtending through said bearas our own, We have hereto afiixed our signaing, a lamp carried by the hub, conductors tures in the presence of two Witnesses. for the lamp extending through said tubular OWEN JAMES EVANS. portlon, and a member secured to said tubui lar portion and bearing against said plate ATLEE OWEN EVANS for holding the hub upon the bearing and Witnesses: operable for oscillating the drum. MAUDE M. MoULToN, In testimony that we claim the foregoing M1140 W. CATHON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

